Romans Chapter Seven
So, as our eternal life starts now and we should consider ourselves dead to sin; we were married into life in Christ - but we were married to another first - the law of God (v1) beforehand; under which we were slaves to sin. (For in being wed into life we are dead to sin as by grace toward complete repentance) so as also a woman is married until her husband is dead and free to marry again (v2), even so were we free from our first bonds in sin to life in Christ. We can not be married to both at once or else we adulterate our gospel. (v3) Therefore we should prefer marriage to Christ and not be wed to the law of sin, but in faith instead - not under sin but under grace, not to sinning, but to repentance. (v4)
For being wed to sin, we obeyed the laws of sin in heirs to death; (v5) but now our husband of sin is dead to us in the grace of God (v5) so that by analogy we serve in our minds the law of grace leading to the righteousness of Christ (v6) as heirs of eternal life. So, is the law evil? No it is not, because without the law as a teacher, we would have no purpose for our redemption in eternal life and our new covenant would be emptied - we would not be heirs. (v7).
The following verses we should all be familiar with, but as Christ is made sin for us, I attempt to show the analogue of how these verses apply to Jesus Christ in the analogue - to show how the law of grace works.
v8 - Those under the law and of the Lord were under condemnation of the law, despite being God's people. Sin was imputed without the law once, (before it was given and God had no tabernacle.) In the nation of Israel under God, the commandment to keep the law was not kept - and the condemnation in His people was great. (Though before the law was given, no sin was imputed by God and it was as dead to Him.) God would wink at the sins of men, but no longer now since the law was given.
v9 - Before the law was given God was without a people and had no concern for lawful sinlessness in men - but when He gave the law and took to Himself a people, they then broke His covenant and He would have to justify His promises on the cross.
v10 - The commandments which He ordained to life condemned His people to death, whereas He intended them to justify His people before Him. Even so, he would have to obey the commandments Himself (even obediently to death) to fulfill His laws and promises.
v11 - For instead of under the grace He would extend, the sin by the law held captive His people and destroyed the faith in Him that He wished for them to seek out.
v12 - But He would not do away with the law - for His people to keep the law is satisfaction for them being righteous enough to be justified before Him.
v13 - The law then was not the thing by which faith in Him was slain, His ways being totally equal - but sin, which corrupted the faith of His flock by replacing His person with an image of Himself that was not seemly - is separating His flock from the true nature of His self.
v14 - Knowing that His law is to justification, being rooted in the truth of God's sovereignty is good; but knowing that His people are trapped in sin, He will fulfil the law and extend His grace. (That in eternity they will keep it.)
v15 - For within His tabernacle of Israel, He extends grace upon His people with a perfect example. What He does perfectly himself he can not allow them to do because their sin is not justifying them - but by grace they can be justified. He would intend to treasure up wrath in the judgement to them in His righteousness, but will not allow Himself to do so. But what He hates, to permit the breaking of His laws, (even temporarily under grace to repentance) that He does.
v16 - If He sends His wrath in judgement, He consents to the law that it is good.
v17 - But God in His love finds that His people are His beloved, and it is not a people He hates, but sin in His tabernacle.
v18 - For God knows that He alone is perfect and His people will never be perfect as He. It is beyond their will to be perfect. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. There is no way to justify a people that are under condemnation of the law by works of the law only.
v19 - For the goodness of He remaining perfect and sending His wrath - increasing His separation from Israel He would not do - but consenting to the evil for a short time is more perfect; if it be to preserve a repentant remnant of Israel; that is the thing He would do.
v20 - Yet if it be the sending of His wrath - it is no longer a good thing of God to destroy His people, and it becomes an imperfect work not to extend grace.
v21 - Then God finds that for Him to extend grace He must permit evil temporarily.
v22 - For Christ delights His Father with His Father's satisfaction of Him - as He would have His Father delighted by His people who would keep the law.
v23 - Yet there is another law not of the intent of God's law that wars over His people - (which is the strength of the law of sin) another law that placates the righteous judgement of God's wrath and extends grace to a remnant of His people.
v24 - God exclaims at the last here how He is brought into ministering grace - for He would cast off those of His people that would not repent - He preserves a remnant of His people Israel instead.
Finally in the chapter Paul thanks God, as we all should. With the law of Godly faith in our minds we serve in newness of spirit keeping the commandments of God, but with our flesh we adulterate the gospel and the perfection of God as to another husband; the law of sin.(v25). So alike to God, we serve the law in the mind through exercise of our faith, and not by the letter of the law.
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